The New Generation Festival 2017

Move over, Glyndebourne – there’s a new opera festival in town. Well, in Florence, to be precise. The New Generation Festival launched to the delight of locals, including Countess Nencia Bolza and her pet parrot Squeaky, and not-so-locals, like Princess Michael of Kent and Lady Gabriella Windsor. Held in the beautiful Corsini Gardens and co-founded by rising conductor Maximilian Fane and producers Roger Granville and Frankie Parham, it had something for everyone: a solo from handsome violinist Charlie Siem, performances from musical comedy duo Bounder & Cad and a set from DJ Harold van Lennep, who went down so well he had to fight off the hordes of people asking for his card. But the cherry on the tiramisu was drag act DENIM, who had 80-year-old Princess Giorgiana Corsini dancing on table tops until 2am.